Illinois Deer hunters donate 72,000 pounds of venison to food banks

February 28, 2007 -- SPRINGFIELD Deer hunters in Illinois donated more than
72,000
pounds of venison to the Illinois Sportsmen Against Hunger (ISAH) Program during
the
2006-07 deer season, providing more than 280,000 meals to needy people in the
state.

Since its inception in 1989, ISAH has received donations of more than 359,000
pounds of
venison thanks to the generosity of deer hunters in the state. The program
allows hunters
to donate deer they harvest to provide venison for distribution to food banks,
food pantries
and charitable organizations during the autumn and early winter deer seasons
each year.

“We salute the hunters and meat processors in the state who participate in the
Illinois
Sportsmen Against Hunger program for their generosity and their commitment to
helping
needy families,” said Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) Acting
Director Sam
Flood. “Nearly 1.4 million meals have been provided over the years because
hunters and
other donors to the program have been willing to help.”

The IDNR and the Illinois Conservation Foundation (ICF) allow hunters to donate
deer
through participating meat processors and encourage hunters and others to make
tax-deductible $50 contributions through the ICF to help cover the cost of
processing the
deer meat.

Monetary donations to Illinois Sportsmen Against Hunger can be made to the
Illinois
Conservation Foundation, One Natural Resources Way, Springfield, IL 62702-1271.
The
funds help cover the costs of processing venison by nearly 50 participating meat
processors throughout the state.

A list of meat processors handling venison for the Illinois Sportsmen Against
Hunger
Program is available on the IDNR web site